05/24/2026
Happy Pentecost Sunday!
(Shared from Major Robbins)
Pentecost, from a Greek word for “fiftieth," is the fiftieth and last day of the Easter season. It is the Christian version of the ancient Jewish pilgrimage festival known as the Festival of Weeks, or Shavuot (pronounced “sha-voo-OAT”), celebrated 50 days after Passover. For the ancient Israelites, this festival was an explicitly diverse, inclusive harvest celebration; and over time, it also came to mark the receiving of the Torah at Mount Sinai, which was yet another kind of harvest and nourishment.
For Christians, Pentecost celebrates the receiving of the Holy Spirit and the birth of the church. The disciples were gathered because of the Festival of Weeks. Jesus had promised the arrival of the Holy Spirit not long after His departure—and sure enough, on the festival day itself, the Holy Spirit arrived. The scene was spectacular and chaotic: a violent, rushing sound like wind; and then “divided tongues as of fire" ushered in the Holy Spirit, whose immediate effect was linguistic. Many were empowered to speak in other languages; and at the same time, each person heard each testimony in their native tongue.
The upshot of all of this was a sense of togetherness and unity: diverse as they were, everyone understood one another and could communicate. They were dazzled, bewildered, and taken aback, asking, "What does this mean?” (Acts 2:12). As if to answer this question, Peter stood and spoke. He cited the prophet Joel, adapting those ancient words to illuminate the present: the decisive chapter of history has arrived, the dawn of God’s joyous Jubilee that Jesus declared early in His ministry.
Now comes the long-promised “pouring out” of the Holy Spirit upon “all flesh” (Joel 2:18; Acts 2:17). Jesus both heralded and inaugurated this new era, and the Spirit would now empower a community through whom the movement’s message of healing, liberation, and joy would go out to the ends of the earth. The church was born!
Today is a perfect time to reflect both on the church and the Holy Spirit. The church is pictured in scripture as a dynamic, diverse, and radically inclusive community of people who follow Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit to carry out God’s creative mission of healing, liberation, and joy for the sake of the world. In this age of profound distrust, fear, and fragmentation, the church’s mission—the essence of Pentecost—has never been more pressing. Just as the miracle of speaking in other languages reversed the divisions of the Tower of Babel, the Pentecost message offers a powerful spiritual framework for breaking down political, cultural, and ideological barriers. In a highly polarized world, it champions connection and understanding over tribalism. So go forward, church, in the power of the Holy Spirit, and take your stand!
